Caitlin Clark's 8-Year Nike Deal Worth Up To $28 Million: REPORT
We now have the details on Caitlin Clark's massive brand deal with Nike. According to The Wall Street Journal, the newly-drafted WNBA superstar will sign an eight-year deal with the company worth up to $28 million.
That seems like a lot of money for an athlete who hasn't yet played in a professional game. But with several brands competing for the biggest name in women's basketball, Nike had to shell out serious cash in order to secure the deal.
(Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports)
Nike had already signed Clark once before — back in 2022. But that was before the 22-year-old became a household name, carried her team to two consecutive National Championship games and broke college basketball's all-time scoring record.
So with that deal scheduled to expire at the end of the 2023-24 season, all the other sportswear brands were ready to pounce. According to the WSJ, Clark's agents informed Nike, Adidas, Under Armour and Puma that winning her commitment would take, at the very least, $3 million per year.
"Some of the brand reps were shocked by the number," Rachel Bachman reported. "It was a huge sum for a women’s basketball player, few of whom ever receive deals worth more than six figures."
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Spooked by the $3 million asking price, Puma reportedly dropped out immediately. Adidas sent Clark some products and even had the prototype ready for a signature shoe, but their offer was too low: $6 million over four years. Under Armour brought in Stephen Curry to try to convince Clark to partner with them, according to The Athletic. UA's offer was $16 million over four years with a signature shoe.
Ultimately, no one was a match for Nike — who committed to $3.5 million annually over eight years. Originally, though, their offer didn’t come with a signature shoe. One possibility floated, according to the WSJ, was that Clark would instead become the female face of the Kobe Bryant line, which relaunched in August 2023. In its final offer, though, the sportswear giant upped its offer to give Clark her own shoe.
Caitlin Clark was drafted No. 1 overall by the Indiana Fever, where she signed a rookie deal worth $338,056 over four years — chump change for Nike's newest it-girl.